United Nations Regional Information Centre launches Europe-wide competition to end Violence against Women

08 March 2011

Brussels (Belgium) - A competition calling for gender equality and an end to all forms of violence against women and girls is launched today, on International Women’s Day by the UN Regional Informational Centre in partnership with the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (UN Women), and UN information offices around Europe.

Brussels (Belgium) - A competition calling for gender equality and an end to all forms of violence against women and girls is launched today, on International Women’s Day by the UN Regional Informational Centre in partnership with the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (UN Women), and UN information offices around Europe.

The Europe-wide competition, which is part of the UN Secretary-General’s Campaign UNiTE to end Violence against Women, invites Europeans, professionals and non-professionals, to create an ad which states: "No to Violence against Women."

The first prize is EUR 5000 and the winner will be selected by a jury composed of experts including Jacques Séguéla, Vice President of advertising giant Havas, Omar Vulpinari, Creative Director of the Visual Communication Department at Fabrica, Benetton’s communication research centre, and Mieke Gerritzen, Designer and Director of the Graphic Design Museum in Breda.

"Joining in the efforts to stop violence is everybody’s responsibility. Governments, private enterprises, civil society groups, communities and individual citizens can all make essential contributions. Men and boys must be active in encouraging respect for women and zero tolerance for violence," says Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director of UN Women.

"We live in a world of violence. Violence against women is all the more intolerable because of the contradiction between love and brutality, the rejection of equality. There will never be enough of us to mobilize against this scourge that neither time nor modernity has managed to defeat", says Jacques Séguéla, Vice President of advertising giant Havas.

"We were extremely encouraged by the enthusiasm with which European citizens joined the competition on the WeCanEndPoverty campaign last year, and because the subject of this year’s competition is, alas, a real tangible issue for every nation, we can expect the same enthusiasm and creativity to put the spotlight on it", says Afsané Bassir-Pour, Director of UNRIC.

The competition opens for submissions on 8 March 2011, International Women’s Day, and ends at midnight (CET) 31 May 2011. The winners will be announced on 25 November 2011–the International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women.

For more details – including the terms and conditions – and to enter the competition, please visit: www.create4theun.eu